Those You've Known
by OxWiCkEdOnExO
Summary: Those you've known and lost still walk behind you. All alone, their song still seems to find you. -postDH-


Disclaimer: I own everything. Sue me. Doooooo it.

Just kidding

The song is from the musical "Spring Awakening" and the story probably makes more sense if you know the song. The name before each section tells you whose point of view it's coming from.

So,

Read.

Review.

I dare you.

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"

RON

Ron Weasley felt the damp grass squish underneath the soles of his shoes. Rain was sprinkling from the swiftly darkening sky and the cold wind rushed through his hair. They had returned to the Hogwarts grounds for a party of their victory over Lord Voldemort but the famous trio had not been in the mood to celebrate. The three of them had somehow silently agreed to leave the Great Hall where the party was raging and they exited the castle and walked to a spot they hadn't visited in over a year.

Ron felt a lump rise in his throat as the beautiful white tombstone came into view. He heard Hermione sniffle as they drew nearer and tried his hardest to hold the tears back. He couldn't control the wave of sorrow that washed over him as they stood in front of the engraved stone.

The past year seemed so unreal to him. A year filled with running from one hiding place to the next, fighting death eater after death eater, receiving injury after injury, destroying every Horcrux, witnessing his brother's death, watching the Dark Lord fall and his best friend finally triumph.

Nobody had told him how hard this adventure was going to be. But, then again, perhaps nobody knew. It seemed that he had awoken every night with the same vivid memory of Fred dueling alongside Percy when all of a sudden the laughter and light vanished from his eyes. He would sleep and see Harry and Voldemort circling each other before Voldemort sent the fatal curse that backfired and killed him. He would find himself day dreaming and unable to stop Tom Riddle's eyes from piercing his thoughts and telling him how Hermione loved Harry and not him, how his mother didn't want him…

Ron watched as Harry placed a shaking, pale hand onto the tombstone.

"You know, my mum once told me that we cannot always hold onto the ones we love the most but that those we've known and lost will always be with us. They walk with us until we learn to keep them in our hearts and not just in our minds." He heard himself whispering to his two friends. He felt their initial shock of his voice breaking the silence but then they both turned to look at him as he continued staring at the stone.

"The world seems a terribly, dark place without him and nothing will be the same until he settles in our hearts… and we move on."

HERMIONE

Hermione Granger looked over at her best friend as he spoke softly. She felt a pang of guilt deep inside her heart as she turned to look at him, tears falling from his eyes. For the last year they had been balancing the fine line between friendship and more. She had told herself so many times that it could work, that if she just plucked up the courage, if she let him kiss her at least once, all would be fine. But she had known. She knew that they couldn't be together during this war. They had to be there for Harry and their relationship would just give him something else to worry about. Then there was that moment in front of the Room of Requirement … and she had kissed him. While they had been fighting she tried to apologize to Ron for her behavior, meaning that she was sorry that she didn't let him kiss her. Ron, however, had thought she was apologizing for kissing him in the first place.

She could tell that he was still upset, that he was still hurt by her words even though he had told her many times that he understood what she meant. She really had tried to tell him that she meant the kiss just not the manner in which it occurred but he wouldn't listen! It was time, she thought, for her to tell him that she loved him. She had feared that this last year would be enough for her to forget her feelings for him but it hadn't happened. She loved him more then ever now and if she didn't tell him now she knew she would lose him forever.

Shadows fell over them and over the stone as clouds filled the dark, night sky. She felt herself remembering all the nights in which she ventured out with the two young men standing on either side of her. She remembered all of the nights that they had sneaked around this castle, across the grounds, into the forest, and even that first night when they had sailed across the lake. She belonged here, and she knew that they had left their mark on this place. A part of her would always linger here at Hogwarts.

HERMIONE AND RON

A strong gust of wind pushed roughly against Hermione's now fragile body and she stumbled, falling against Ron. He wrapped his arms around her and helped her to stand upright again. She looked into his eyes and felt that all of that sorrow in her heart was shared by him. There was something in Ron's eyes that told her that he knew exactly how she was feeling at that moment, he knew that they were finally home. They were home here at Hogwarts; they were home standing with their hero and best friend; they were home looking into each others eyes.

Hermione felt her mouth begin moving and the words she had been wanting to express for years were slipping out. No sound came from her though, yet her lips formed the words anyway.

"I love you."

---

Ron felt his stomach drop and his heart swell. He had known that she loved him all this time, but to have her finally tell him made him feel as if there might actually be hope in his future.

"I love you too."

His mouth moved silently and he saw a tear fall from Hermione's eye and he quickly reached up and wiped it away. Her skin colored as his finger brushed against her cheek and he felt his mouth muscles tighten as he smiled for the first time in ages. Somehow he knew, now, that they would make it through these hard times after war,

Yes, they would make it through.

HARRY, RON, AND HERMIONE

Hermione's fingers were suddenly lacing themselves through Harry and Ron's fingers. She gripped their hands firmly as they all looked down at the tombstone. A faint song sounded in the distance and the three looked up to see Fawks the phoenix flying towards them, his melody reaching into their very souls.

"Those you've known and lost still walk behind you." Ron recited his mother's exact words.

"And their song still seems to find you. They call to you and it's as if you knew their longing…" Harry spoke in a low whisper.

"It whistles through the wind as the shadows begin falling"

Hermione's voice was followed by silence from the two boys and the only noises now were Fawks' song and the harsh wind whistling through the trees carrying the notes all around until it seemed to consume them.**  
**

HARRY

Harry Potter glanced up at the sky where the phoenix flew. His heart had felt so alone this last year. He could tell that Ron and Hermione had tried their hardest to break through his shell and try to take his pain and put it unto themselves. He knew, though, that the reason this hadn't worked was because he had intentionally isolated himself from them. He didn't want them to be lost like he was. He didn't want them to feel the loneliness and pain that he did. It would be unfair of him to cast that on them.

The clouds in the sky were starting to disappear and he could see the brightly shining stars beaming down. Spring had come and gone bringing war and the final battle but now, as he looked up into the sky, he sensed the beginning of summer. A new summer that would be different from all of the others. No Voldemort, no Dursley's, no more fear. It would just be him, Ron, and Hermione.

HARRY, HERMIONE, AND RON

Harry looked over at his two best friends. They were staring right back at him and although they made no noise, he could hear their voices inside his head.

"_Harry, we can do this! Just believe in yourself! Harry, believe in us! We love you…"_

"_Pull through, mate. We're here for you! We're still here! We won't leave you, alright? Hermione and I are here…. Always here…"_

The night sky had covered them in darkness and for the first time in a year Harry felt their words hitting his heart. They were breaking him down. They were breaking through his shell and attaching themselves to his soul. Their eyes were glued to him as he felt his heart opening up, as he felt himself opening back up to them at last.

They had been beckoning him back for many months now, and he had been longing to do so but something had stopped him from doing it. His brain had kept telling him to stop and to just close up and shut them out. But his heart had finally gotten the better of him and he felt light returning to his body. He felt their love coming back to him.

---

The wind blew through Hermione's hair and it billowed behind her and she felt the sorrow and tragedies in her heart wash away and fly away into the wind. She was home and she was safe. She was with Harry and Ron and the spirit of their mentor wrapped his arms around them, protecting them.

---

Ron knew that this life wasn't over for the three of them. They would continue to find more adventure, battle new dangers, pursue new dreams, and find new love. What those adventures, and dangers were he could not say but he felt that he knew what those new dreams were. He dreamed of raising a family like his parents had. He wanted to find new love in his children like his parents had loved him and all his brothers and sister. He wanted to love Hermione and to love Harry for the rest of his life. He wanted to dream with them , fight with them, run with them, laugh with them, and die with them. He never wanted to be alone again.

_**They're still home**_

_**We're still home**_**  
---**

HARRY

Harry tightened his grip on Hermione's hand and removed his other hand from the stone.

"Let's go."

They all nodded and began to walk away from the tombstone, never releasing each other's hands.

As they moved slowly back towards the castle Harry made a silent vow to himself.

"_I will never let them leave my heart again. Through the wind, through the dark, through anything, I will help them live their dreams. I will walk now with them, and I will call to them when I need them. I will never let any body look over them again. The world will never think of Harry Potter without thinking of Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger; the Famous Trio."_

And in that moment Harry realized that they were still there with him; after 7 years of danger and terror, they were still there. He had never had any friends until he boarded the Hogwarts Express for the first time and here he was, years later, with the two greatest friends in the world. He had put them through the most terrible ordeals and yet they had stuck by him through it all.

"… _Hermione and I are here… always here…" _Ron's voice echoed in his mind.

The three of them suddenly stopped. Hermione had pulled them all to a halt in the middle of the great lawn. She reached up and kissed Harry on the cheek.

7 years of friendship seemed to burn from her lips into his skin.

She then turned and kissed Ron on the cheek. She pulled back slowly, but then reached back up and kissed him on the mouth. The kiss didn't last very long and she pulled away quickly leaving Ron looking briefly dumbstruck. Harry felt himself beginning to laugh.

How could he ever leave these two behind? They were so perfectly imperfect for him.

"_Those you've known and lost still walk behind you…"_

The three had finally reached the castle. They looked up for a moment before all three of them reached out a hand opened the large oak doors.

Yes, they were home but more importantly, they were together.

I'll walk now with them  
I'll call on their names  
And I'll see their thoughts are known

Not gone –  
Not gone –  
They walk with my heart (Not gone) –  
I'll never let them go (Not gone)


End file.
